Dot Dot Dot
by distantmuse
Summary: Robert convinces Anna that it's time for them to retire from the secret agent life, but a family emergency brings them right back into it.
1. Chapter 1

Anna answered a knock at the door to find her cheerful Aussie ex-husband standing there, holding twin hot pink plastic buckets filled with bottles. At a glance, Anna saw rum, Curacao, and pineapple juice.

"What's all this?" Anna asked in amusement.

"Mai Tais." Robert announced, inviting himself into Anna's house. He set the buckets down on her coffee table. "Some assembly required."

Anna laughed, recognizing the logos of some children's show she'd seen in passing with her grandchildren emblazoned on the sides of the buckets. "Those are kids' sand pails."

"It was the best I could do on short notice, Luv."

"I didn't give you _any_ notice." Anna pointed out with a smirk.

"All the same, I'm calling it."

"Calling what?" Anna asked in confusion.

"Our retirement. Our last mission was _the_ _final_ mission."

After finding out that Peter wasn't her son, but actually her nephew, and ending her relationship with Finn, Anna had desperately wanted to get away from Port Charles and find herself again. She didn't recognize the weak, weepy woman she had become, and she knew just how to fix herself – with a little excitement. When Robert announced he was leaving town on a human trafficking rescue mission, she'd insisted on tagging along.

They'd rescued a dozen young women, but after a shootout, they'd woken up with various injuries in neighboring beds in a shoddy Algerian hospital, where they spent a hellish week before Frisco was able to fly them to a world-class facility in Madrid to finish recuperating.

While on the mission, Robert and Anna had their usual banter, a little flirtation, even some cuddling. The physical affection between them had always been there, even when they were in relationships with other people.

"I enjoyed the mission, until we ended up in the hospital, anyway." Anna said, sitting down on the couch.

"I thought I did, but I realized something." Robert sank down onto the couch beside her. "It isn't as fulfilling as it used to be."

"I have a hard time believing that you are really going to commit to retiring."

"You don't trust me?" Robert asked with a raised brow.

"You know I trust you more than anyone else in this world, but you love this! You love traveling the world, putting yourself in danger, and being a hero."

"But I love _you_ more, Anna." Robert said quietly, locking eyes with her.

He ran hand through her dark tresses, noting the shimmer of silver that had streaked its way through some strands – a result of weeks away from a salon. Somehow, that physical sign of her aging only made her more beautiful to him. It was symbolic of all the years that he had known and loved her.

"I love you, too." Anna whispered.

"The last mission was a wake-up call. We almost died, again, like so many times on these missions. Hell, we've even been _believed _dead…"

"Some of us more than others." Anna quipped.

Robert ignored her. "And we don't have the luxury of time like we used to. We're long out of nine lives by now, Annie. Shouldn't we spend this last one together? Finally?"

Anna studied him quietly, brushing her hand slowly down the side of his face and bringing her fingers over to trace his lips. Robert grasped her hand in his and placed a soft kiss where he'd once placed wedding rings onto her finger before pulling her body closer to his on the couch.

With one hand on the back of his head, Anna brought Robert's face close to hers in a deep kiss. He parted her lips with his tongue and allowed it to intertwine with hers. Her shirt went first, then his, and they continued undressing each other until they were down to their underwear. He caressed her bare skin reverently, carefully avoiding the part of her side that had been wounded by a bullet during the Algeria mission.

Robert fiddled with the clasp of her bra, but found his hands fumbling with the anticipation. Anna reached behind her and unfastened it herself, tossing it to the floor.

"My Anna…" Robert murmured, circling the swells of her breasts with his thumbs. "You are still breathtakingly gorgeous."

He trailed his lips down her neck, sucking and licking each new piece of skin he touched. With her head back, Anna closed her eyes and enjoyed his touch. When he got to her breasts, he sucked each one into his mouth until they formed perfect pink peaks.

She reached into his boxers to find him so hard that she was a little surprised. "Have you been taking Viagra in your old age?"

"Do you think I'd really need it around you?" Robert growled softly.

Anna inhaled sharply as his fingers made contact with the heat between her legs. His erection twitched in anticipation as he felt how wet she already was. He let his fingers linger there, running them up and down her folds. The slow, gentle touches he lavished on her reminded her of their first time together. For the young ingenue Anna, it had been the perfect introduction to making love; but for this more experienced Anna, it was tantalizingly slow. She craved more contact from him, and she sought it out by grinding herself against his hand.

"Eager, are we?" Robert said with a cocky smirk, sliding a finger inside of her.

He pumped his finger in and out of her and added a second, loving watching her squirm underneath him. His fingers curled inside her as his thumb stroked her most sensitive spot.

"How is that?"

"It's wonderful." Anna said, breathing heavily. "But what I really want is you."

"Me where?" Robert prompted, teasing her with lazy caresses.

"Inside of me. Now." Anna gasped desperately. "I need you to make love to me."

When she said those words, he couldn't take it anymore. He pulled off his boxers and moved so that he was between her legs. Using his finger, he tipped her chin so that they were gazing into each other's eyes.

"Look at me." Robert whispered.

After nearly thirty years of not touching her in that way, Robert's intention was to go slowly and to savor the feeling of joining their bodies together inch by inch. But she felt so warm and ready when he positioned himself at her entrance that he pushed himself completely inside her and filled her in one stroke, causing Anna to let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding into a soft moan that he barely heard over his own.

The intensity of his touch drove Anna crazy with each thrust. Her head knocked back into the arm of the couch over and over, but she didn't care. Nothing else mattered but Robert and what he was doing to her body. The pressure and heat built inside her, spreading through her stomach. Robert could feel she was close, and he increased his pace, making her cry out in his arms as she relinquished control of her body and shuddered with a strong orgasm.

She was so beautiful when she came that he was quickly right behind her. Recognizing the familiar sounds of his approaching climax, Anna suddenly clenched the muscles of her core tightly around him – something she remembered he had loved when they were together.

"Oh God, Anna." Robert panted.

He groaned her name and an assortment of expletives into her ear as he released himself deep inside of her. He collapsed to the side of her on the couch. Anna pulled a blanket off the back of the couch to cover them and snuggled her head into his chest.

"You're still amazing."

"So are you."

"Can we just stay like this in each other's arms forever?" Anna asked, trailing a maroon shellacked nail down his chest.

"We're retired, Luv. We can do whatever the hell we want now."

* * *

The couch wasn't built for two people to sleep on, but they'd slept in far worse places. The sun streaming in through the window woke Robert first the next morning. He smiled at the sight of Anna still dozing against his chest. He brushed a few tousled strands of hair away from her face, watching her and enjoying the moment. It wasn't long before she felt his eyes on her, and her eyelids fluttered open.

"Morning, Annie."

Anna smiled, stretching. "Morning."

"You sleep okay?"

"Mmhm. You?"

"This couch isn't the greatest, but the company was pretty amazing."

"I thought this retirement was supposed to come with beach chairs and an ocean." Anna reminded Robert, giving him a soft kiss.

"Mmm." Robert murmured against her lips. "That's right."

"Well, we've got the passports…"

"Where should it be? Bali? Bora Bora? Mykonos?" Robert punctuated each destination with a kiss to her lips.

"I thought I would wake up, and you would be gone." Anna suddenly confessed.

"Never." Robert said firmly.

"It wouldn't be the first time." Anna pointed out, picking at the blanket.

"We can't do anything about our past, Anna." Robert said, putting one hand on Anna's cheek and forcing her to look at him. "All we can do is think about now and our future. We're soulmates, and even as the universe keeps us apart, it's always trying to put us back together."

"I want that." Anna said softly. "I really do."

"Then take it. One day at a time."

"One day at a time." Anna agreed. "I love you so much."

"I love you too. Now that that's settled..." Robert clasped his hands together. "Should we have the drinks?"

"I don't even know how to make them." Anna admitted.

"Hell, I don't either. That's what Google's for."

"It's also 8 o'clock in the morning."

"Hm… I guess we'll just have to find some other way to pass the time then, won't we?" Robert said with a wink, sliding his hand between Anna's thighs.

Anna bit her lip. "I think we'll manage."

* * *

_This was originally supposed to be a one-shot, but I do have a plot idea if there's enough interest for me to continue. :)_


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Okay, I decided to continue this, so let's see where it takes us... :) Here's a short transitional chapter._

* * *

Anna gazed out of the window of the over-the-water bungalow she and Robert shared in Bali. It was the fifth day of their stay, and they had just returned from an afternoon swim. They'd spent their days making love in the mornings and evenings with swimming, dancing, drinking, and relaxing in between. Retirement was perfect.

"I still can't get over it. This view is just so beautiful."

"I know what you mean." Robert said, his eyes focused on her instead of the azure waters. Anna smiled as he kissed the side of her head. "I have something for you."

Anna's eyes widened as Robert produced a black velvet box from behind his back. They had both been enjoying their reconnection, but it was too soon for Anna to think about any next steps.

Anna released the breath she'd been holding in a quiet sigh of relief as she realized that the box that he extended to her was too large and flat to contain a ring. He watched as she opened it. Nestled in a bed of black velvet was a platinum knot with an alexandrite sparkling in the center.

"Oh, Robert. It's gorgeous." Anna gasped, rotating the box in her hand to watch the gem shine and change color.

"Do you like it?"

"Natural alexandrite is so rare and expensive. This must have cost…"

"Don't worry about what it cost." Robert cut in. "May I?"

Anna twisted her damp hair up with one hand and allowed Robert to fasten the necklace on her. He placed a soft kiss on the side of her neck when he finished. "I chose a knot because… Some knots can't be untied."

"You're admitting there's a knot you can't get out of?" Anna laughed. "Who are you, and what have you done with Robert Scorpio?"

Robert sighed. "Will you leave my metaphor alone, Anna?"

"Sorry, sorry." Anna said, pressing her lips against his. "Thank you. I love it."

"I'm glad. It looks great on you."

"How can I repay your kindness?" Anna said with a suggestive smile, tugging at his swimming trunks.

Robert raised a brow. "Well, I have a few ideas."

Anna placed her hands on Robert's bare chest and pushed him backward onto their bed. She covered his body with hers, her lips moving against his as her hands busily worked to remove his wet swim trunks. She grinned as his erection was freed and lowered herself to it.

"Need a hand with that? Or maybe… A mouth?" Anna teased.

"You little minx…"

Her tongue started at the base of his length, trailing its way up until she sucked the head of it into her mouth. Robert groaned and bucked his hips involuntarily, eliciting a chuckle from Anna. She loved the feeling of having power over his pleasure. He tangled his hands in her hair as she pumped her hand up and down his hardness in tandem with her mouth, making him mutter her name and a stream of curses.

They were interrupted by the ringing of a cell phone.

"That's yours." Anna said, releasing him from her mouth.

"Fuck it. I'll smash the bloody thing against the wall." Robert moaned.

"Suit yourself." Anna said, lowering her head to swirl her tongue around the head of his member.

"Oh, yes…" Robert gripped the sheet in his hand. "Just like that, Anna."

A different ring tone filled the room, and Anna pulled away from him again. "Okay, that's mine. This is starting to worry me."

"We're retired. Forget about it." Robert gasped.

Anna's hand pawed over the bedside table, fumbling for her phone. "Someone obviously needs us."

Robert closed his eyes and tried to steady his breathing as she climbed away from him. "Fine. Answer it."

Anna answered the phone hastily without looking at her caller ID. "Hello? Oh, Robin! Hello, sweetheart. Wait. Slow down, Robin… I can't understand what you're saying."

Robert's heart dropped at the mention of their daughter's name. He turned and propped himself up on his arm, watching Anna's face for signs of what was going on.

"Oh my God." Anna sat up suddenly, clutching the sheets to her chest. "I'm out of the country right now, but I'll be on the first plane I can get. It will probably take me a day to get there, but I'll be there as quickly as I can, darling. Um, yes. I think I can get ahold of your father, too." Anna said, looking over at Robert guiltily. She didn't feel it was the time to explain that they'd gotten back together.

"What is it?" Robert asked anxiously the moment Anna ended the call. "Is Robin sick?"

"No." Anna shook her head gravely. "Emma never came home from school yesterday."


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: I'm fudging Emma's age a bit. She's 16 here._

* * *

The cheesy hold music streaming out of Anna's phone speaker was nearly as maddening as the mantra the recorded voice kept repeating: _We are experiencing higher than usual call volumes. Please continue to hold. Your call is important to us. Thank you for calling American Airlines._

"This is all our fault." Robert said, dragging his trusty, worn duffel bag onto the bed.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"It's our jobs… Our life choices." Robert said as he as she stuffed one of his shirts into his bag. "All of the enemies we've made over the years. How many times have they put the people we love in danger? Some psychopath has probably kidnapped Emma and done God knows what with her."

Anna shook her head as she zipped her toiletry bag and shoved it into her suitcase. "I think you're jumping to conclusions, Robert."

"Am I? Because this is _exactly_ the conclusion that usually comes out of these situations." Robert braced himself on the side of the bed with his arms and lowered his head. "I've fought like hell my entire life to protect our family and it has never, ever been enough."

"Robert…" Anna wrapped one of her hands around one of his. "Honey. Please don't say that. You can't blame yourself."

"Can't I though? Isn't some of it my fault?"

"No." Anna insisted, squeezing his hand. "Like you said, you've always made it your life's mission to protect us. I know our family has a rather… Interesting… History when it comes to things like this, but… Have you considered that maybe Emma took off on her own?"

"What?!" Robert turned and stared at Anna. "Why in the hell would she do that?"

It was an idea that Anna had been turning over in her head since she'd hung up with Robin, and she was almost afraid to voice it aloud. Emma had the same determination and independence running through her veins that she and Robin did, and Anna wondered if it had finally caused her rebel against her family.

"Because sometimes, young women make rash decisions."

"Emma's not like that." Robert argued.

"She's growing up, Robert. She's not a little girl anymore. I was not much older than her when I was training to be a secret agent." Anna pointed out.

"I hardly think she's run off to join the DVX or the WSB." Robert snorted.

Anna continued with a sigh. "And her mother wasn't much older than she is when she contracted HIV."

"You think she ran off with some guy?" Robert shook his head incredulously.

"I just think we need to consider all of the possibilities."

"We have to get the hell out of here before we can do anything." Robert said, thrusting his fist against his bag in frustration.

Anna sighed, glancing over at her cell phone as the hold music from the airline continued to loop. "We're obviously not going to make any progress this way. Even if we find a flight out, the layovers and connections might make it take two or more days to get there."

"I'll call Frisco." Robert decided, grabbing his phone.

* * *

It was a day and a half later before Anna and Robert finally made it to Berkeley, but the jet Frisco had chartered for them still got them there faster than any commercial airline would have. Robin opened her front door and was surprised to find her parents standing there together, weary from lack of sleep and all of the possible situations they'd debated throughout the flight.

"Mom! And Dad! Thank God you are here." Robin said, wiping tears from her eyes as Anna and Robert enveloped her into a hug. "The police are 'working on the case,' but they're not getting anywhere. And I just needed you both so much."

"I'm sorry it took so long." Anna said, smoothing her hand down Robin's hair. "It was hell for us to get out of Indonesia."

"Were you together on a mission or something?" Robin asked as she let them in the house.

"Um." Anna realized her slip up and glanced at Robert. They hadn't told Robin about their retirement either.

"Yeah." Robert lied, changing the subject. "Where's Patty Cake?"

"He's trying to get Noah to sleep. He's been a basket case since Emma disappeared."

"What information do we have?" Anna asked as she, Robert, and Robin sat down on the cough together.

"There's footage of her leaving the school. She didn't get into any cars or leave with anyone, at least not that the camera caught. She was walking, but not in the direction of our house." Robin fiddled around with her phone. "Here, I have a screenshot saved of it."

Robert took the phone and squinted at the grainy shot. His eyes weren't what they used to be, and the school's video equipment was hardly state of the art. The shot had captured Emma's retreating figure, but one thing caught his eye.

"Does she always carry a backpack _and _a duffel bag to school?" Robert asked. "Did she have practice or anything?"

Robin took the phone back and looked at the picture again. "No. I didn't even notice that before."

"It looks like maybe she planned on going somewhere." Robert cast a side glance at Anna, realizing that she could have been right about Emma choosing to take off on her own.

"Had you fought or anything that day?" Anna asked.

"No, nothing was different." Robin said, shaking her head. "Everything that morning was completely normal.

"Have they tried to ping her cell phone?" Robert asked.

"Yeah, but the last location was around the school. She's turned it off, or the battery is dead."

Anna rubbed her hand across her bloodshot eyes, thinking. "Is there anyone she's close to who might know what she could have been thinking or planning if she did leave home on her own? Does she have a boyfriend?"

"Not that we know of."

"What about a close friend?"

"Her best friend's name is Lexie."

"Get the best friend over here now." Robert stated firmly. "I want to talk to her."


	4. Chapter 4

Lexie bounced her knee nervously as she sat on the couch in the Drake living room, faced by Robin, Robert, and Anna. She had spent many hours at the Drake house and had always felt comfortable there. Robin had become like a second mother to her.

Emma had spoken about her grandmother and grandfather frequently, and she had told Lexie tales of their dangerous, exhilarating adventures. But the two people in front of her looked far from glamorous international spies. They merely looked like exhausted, worried grandparents.

"Have you noticed anything unusual about Emma recently?" Anna asked.

"Like what do you mean?"

"Any new friends, or different behavior, or anything different she's been doing on the internet?"

"Well, she's had all of these pictures on her computer of Italy lately." Lexie said.

"Italy?" Robin furrowed her brow.

"Oh my God. You don't think she ran away to Italy, did you?" Lexie asked anxiously.

"No, honey. I don't think she would have made it out of the country." Anna said gently.

Anna tried to comfort Lexie with a reassuring pat to her hand. What a joke it was when Anna was anything but assured of her granddaughter's safety.

"Maybe that was for a school project?" Robert suggested.

"Or maybe she was curious because her mother was born there, and…" Anna gestured between herself and Robert. "We were married there."

"We'll keep it in mind, but it's probably unrelated." Robert said dismissively. "Is there anything else you can remember that has seemed out of the ordinary for Emma lately?"

Lexie hesitated. "Well…"

Robin leaned forward eagerly. "Yes?"

"She gave me her phone one day to show me some meme, and this message popped up."

Lexie seemed to be avoiding all of their eyes. Anna and Robert, with their high level of training, both picked up on it quickly and exchanged a glance.

"What kind of message?" Robert asked.

"I didn't read it, but I saw the avatar, and it was some guy."

"Some guy." Robert echoed, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice. "Could you be a little more specific? Young, old? Brown hair, blonde hair, _anything_ more specific?"

"Brown… And he was probably like thirty." Lexie mumbled.

"THIRTY?" Robert exploded, jumping to his feet.

Lexie shrunk back as he towered over her. "I asked her who he was, but she just waved it off and changed the subject. We didn't ever talk about it again."

"And you didn't think that _maybe _you should tell someone what you saw?! Your parents or her parents or a teacher or ANY adult?! For the love of God…" Robert paced back in forth, raking a hand through his hair.

"Robert." Anna's tone was warning as she tugged lightly on his shoulder. "Let's go talk in the kitchen for a minute."

Reluctantly, Robert stalked into the kitchen with her. Anna faced him and laced the fingers of both of her hands through his as she locked eyes with him, trying to calm him down through her gaze.

"Robert… Remember, this is not an interrogation. This is a teenager who is helping us and who didn't commit any crime."

"She's an idiot!" Robert hissed.

"She is a _teenager_." Anna repeated. "One who is terrified and upset because her best friend is missing."

"We have to find Emma, Anna. She's been talking to some thirty-year-old guy? Nothing good can come from that."

"I know." Anna said, brushing her hand down his cheek. "I know you're just worried."

"I keep thinking of those girls we rescued in Algeria… Some of them were younger than Emma, and…" Robert trailed off, shaking his head. Some of the girls had looked completely terrified, while others just gave them a vacant stare that was even worse.

"Let _me_ finish talking to Lexie, okay? We'll see what else she has to say, and we'll go from there."

"All right."

* * *

Anna's continued interview of Lexie didn't yield any further useful information. Robin begged her fatigued parents to get some sleep; super spies or not, she realized they were older than they once were and that the disappearance of their granddaughter was taking a toll on them.

"I'm sorry we only have one guest room." Robin said, piling some extra blankets onto the bed. "If, uh… If it makes you uncomfortable to share a bed, one of you could sleep on the couch."

Robert half laughed. "Your mother and I have shared plenty of sleeping quarters together… Hotel rooms, hospital beds, floors, rock formations, jail cells, labs…"

"We'll be fine." Anna assured her. It still wasn't time to reveal their reunion and budding relationship.

"The police are still looking for Emma. Promise you'll both try to get some rest, or you won't be any good to the investigation anyway."

"We'll try, darling." Anna said, running her hand through Robin's dark locks.

After exchanging goodnight hugs and kisses with her parents, Robin left them. Neither of them would've admitted it, but they were exhausted after a 24-hour flight where they hadn't slept much and their interview with Lexie.

They didn't talk as they changed into their pajamas and collapsed into the bed together. Robert pulled Anna back toward him and wrapped his arm around her, letting his hand rest on her stomach while he nestled his chin against her shoulder.

"I love you."

"I love you too. We're going to find her." Anna whispered into the dark. "If it's the last thing we do."


End file.
